Willy De Nolf is a Belgian tree nursery specialising in growing shrubs, perennials, conifers, climbing plants and trees in pots. ‘By both varying our offer and aiming for a broad clientele, we spread our risks which translates into a healthy annual growth of the company,’ CEO Willy De Nolf testifies.
‘Our speciality is that we do not specialise in anything but aim to offer a very wide range of products.’ - Willy De Nolf, CEO
History
Willy De Nolf started his company in 1985 as a producer of container plants. In the meantime, the second generation is firmly in the saddle, with two sons and a daughter exploring production, marketing and sales. Over the course of the years, the company has experienced gradual growth, both in terms of surface area and turnover. ‘We started expanding in the nineties and even now we have plans to let the company grow, but we above all strive for healthy growth’, Willy De Nolf emphasises. At present we have a total surface area of 30 hectares, of which 5ha in an unheated greenhouse. We are active at various locations in Waregem and in Lochristi, where the soil is suitable for growing plants that like an acidic soil.’
Wide range
‘We have a range of over 1600 varieties in different pot sizes, which guarantees an offer of almost 3000 products. We deliver the greater part of our plants in 3.6 litre and 10 litre pots. By growing solitary plants in large pots, our nursery also has unique specimens that can offer great added value in the garden. We have everything in stock and can therefore fulfil our clients’ needs rapidly. Naturally we follow the trends and constantly look for new and improved varieties to expand our range of plants. Every year we launch around 50 to 100 novelties, about half of which we offer in large volumes whilst the other half is above all made up of larger solitary plants. At the moment we are focussing on box alternatives, continues Willy De Nolf. ‘Depending on the intended use, various alternatives can be suitable, for example hedges made of Osmanthus or Prunus and varieties of Ilex that can be easily shaped.’
Sustainable production
‘We grow our plants in accordance with high quality requirements and with respect for our surroundings and the environment. That is why we greatly value our “MPS GAP” and “MPS A” certification by Milieu Project Sierteelt (www.my-mps.com). We also want to be increasingly aware of our consumption of water and energy. That is why we recover the drain water from our entire production surface area. The water that we use is a combination of rainwater and groundwater. There is no leaching of fertilizers since we add the nutrients directly to the soil. In addition, we are currently examining the possibilities of a wind turbine at our company so that we can produce our own energy for cooling and irrigation,’ Willy De Nolf explains.
Almost 30 export countries
‘Our domestic market of Belgium forms around 40% of our turnover. The other 60% is therefore intended for export; our products are exported to almost 30 countries inside and outside the European Union. Our neighbouring countries of France, the Netherlands, the UK and Germany represent a significant share of that. We are active in a more limited way in other countries, but the Russian-speaking region is still worthy of mention,’ Willy De Nolf. ‘We feel that personal contact is essential in long-term trade relations. That is why invest a lot of time in direct contact and we meet each client at least once a year, even if we have around 1000 clients in total.’
Photo label & price labels
Willy De Nolf believes in the power of beautiful presentation. ‘Most of our plants have an attractive photo label. This applies for all our flowering plants, unique specimens and special varieties. The exceptions are primarily hedge plants and larger conifers. The photo is even applied directly to the pot for our shrubs and conifers in a 3 litre or 3.6 litre pot. This ensures that the photo cannot be pulled loose and that the plants are always presented in a beautiful and uniform way.’
Willy De Nolf also offers a solution for clients who want their own price on the label. ‘We can provide a slotted tag or a sticker for each plant bearing the barcode, selling price or other information. Via the web shop, the client can either enter a fixed price or can work with a fixed coefficient that is entered directly. In this way we offer our clients an easy and efficient solution, concludes Willy De Nolf.
Noble Selection®
‘As a result of our wide range of products, it is not easy to make the added value of certain plants clear to our clients. That is why we launched our Noble Selection® label’, declares Willy De Nolf. ‘We want to use it to help our clients make the right choice in our very large assortment. Within our range we select plants that can offer clear added value compared to the available alternatives, so that the client is also certain of quality and sustainable production. At present there are some 70 varieties that are given the Noble Selection® label; together, they represent 10% of our turnover.’
Company in figures
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Employees:
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2 managers
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+- 20 permanent workers
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10 to 25 seasonal workers
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Company surface area:
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25 ha container field in the open air
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5 in an unheated glasshouse
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Export: 60 % of the turnover – major destinations:
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France
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Netherlands
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UK
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Germany
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Scandinavia
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Eastern Europe
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Products: container plants
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Over 1600 varieties
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Almost 3000 references
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